No. 16 Air Force Wraps Up Weekend at Triton Invitational

Falcons fall to Redlands, defeat Pomona

Junior Jack Hines

Sept. 7, 2008

LA JOLLA, Calif. -
Splitting a pair of games on Sunday, the 16th-ranked Air Force water polo team finished in 11th place at the Triton Invitational, hosted by UC San Diego. The Falcons dropped a 13-7 contest to conference foe Redlands, but defeated WWPA opponent Pomona-Pitzer, 8-5, in the 11th place contest.

The opening period against Redlands was a back-and-forth affair, with four ties and two lead changes. The Bulldogs got off to a quick start with an early goal, but the Falcons responded with a pair of scores from Kevin Williams (Sr., River Forest, Ill.) and Jack Hines (Jr., Riverside, Calif.). Following another Redlands score, junior Alex Churnside (Orange, Calif.) gave the Falcons a 3-2 lead, but the Bulldogs came back before taking a 5-4 lead after one period.

After tying the contest once more in the second quarter with a score from sophomore Bobby Geiger (Buellton, Calif.), Air Force was unable to withstand a Redlands run, as the Bulldogs outscored the Falcons 8-3 in the final three periods. Williams, Churnside and Geiger led the Air Force offense with two goals each in the game.

Meanwhile, Air Force fared better in its game against Pomona, handing the Sagehens an 8-5 loss. The Falcons now move to 2-2 on the season and 2-1 in the Western Water Polo Association.

The Falcons return to action Sept. 19, when they visit powerhouse Stanford in a 5:00 p.m. Air Force will then take part in the prestigious NorCal Tournament, hosted by Pacific, Sept. 20-21.